This invention relates generally to washing machines and, more specifically, to a mechanism for coupling and de-coupling appropriate elements of a washing machine during selected portions of the wash cycle.
At least some known washing machines typically include a perforated basket for holding clothing or other articles to be washed, an agitator disposed within the basket which agitates the clothes in the basket, and a motor which drives the agitator and the basket. The articles to be washed are immersed in water with detergent and washed under the influence of an oscillating agitator. After agitation, the articles are rinsed with clean water and the basket is spun at sufficient speed to centrifugally extract the rinse water from the articles.
Generally, the agitator and basket are mounted on concentric shafts with the agitator shaft internal to the basket shaft. During agitation, the basket and basket shaft are motionless while the agitator shaft and agitator are free to oscillate to impart a cleaning action to the articles being washed. During spin cycles, the agitator shaft and basket shaft are engaged so that the agitator and basket spin in concert with no relative motion between the two. The coupling and uncoupling of the agitator and basket shafts is usually controlled by the mechanical drive system. However, the drive system could be simpler and less costly to manufacture if the coupling of the basket and agitator was controlled by a separate system.